Kaitou Kid's Last Heist
by ahou-toxin
Summary: Katiou Kid is leaving, and he drops by Tantei-san to ask for help on his last heist. Little does Saguru know how much is really riding on this. / Kaito x Saguru / Kaitou Kid x Tantei-san, could be as platonic as you like. (Or not, whatever. It's your call.)


The sound of a cape fluttering was what tore Saguru's attention away from his book. He knew that sound too well, and would have been damned if it didn't by any means disturb him.

Without question as to how the white shadow entered through the window Saguru was sure he had locked, and without really having to look up, he uttered the name of his room's intruder, "Kaitou Kid."

"Perceptive as always, Tantei-san," Kid responded, taking note of the fact that Hakuba had not even put his book down yet.

"Might I ask what brings you here?" Hakuba coolly asked, marking his pages before shutting his book and setting it atop his desk.

"I came to propose we set our rivalry aside for a moment," said Kid, "For I have a favor to ask you."

"And? …What would granting you this favor involve?" Hakuba chuckled, finding it amusing to have the Kaitou Kid lay before him a truce.

"Now, Tantei-san, it's quite some serious matter, I would appreciate if you don't laugh at this for a second."

Hakuba was taken aback by the sudden seriousness in the former's voice.

One of many observances he'd made about the Kid is his placid, smooth voice. No matter how confident he sounded, there was always a hint of playfulness.

Said hint of playfulness was missing, and it brought about a worry in Saguru's mind.

"Alright…" Hakuba shrugged, not presenting his uneasiness at the gravity with which the Kid was speaking. "Kaitou Kid-san."

"Kuroba Kaito, if you would please."

Hakuba then turned around, redirecting his attention fully on the white-clad teen. "Where's your monocle?"

"I left it with someone important," Kaito replied, disrobing his top hat as well. He decided to drop it as he walked towards the half-Brit's bed.

"Kuroba-kun…"

"Well, Tantei-san, I'm very pleased to share with you something,"

Hakuba found it hard to adjust to, Kaito using Kaitou Kid's tone.

Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he'd known all along. Heck, he'd gone even as far as to handcuff himself to the troublemaker to prove it.

But this time was… Different.

This was the confession he was going to get? Nothing flashy or dazzling? Anticlimactic? After so much time's worth of chases and deadpanned speculations, this was it?

Saguru was not able to carry on in this train of thoughts when the thief continued. "A very very recent event in my life has just sealed my fate. Forever. And I'm glad to be able to share it with you."

"…With… Me?"

"You, and _only_ you," Kaito said, that trace of playfulness now detectable. Yet, the seriousness never faltered. "Taintei-san."

"And what is it, Kid-san?" Hakuba inquired in a tone that surely failed to suggest his growing anxiety.

"I've found it," is all Kaito answered.

Under close scrutiny, it was visible that Hakuba's features were beginning to contort in disorientation at the vague answer.

Kaito paused for several reasons. He was thinking about whether the three words were good enough an introduction. He was also thinking about how else to continue. But he had to admit, he delayed because he also wanted Hakuba to really ask.

"Hey," Hakuba started.

"What _hey_?" Kaito dropped Kid's tone and was now using his own, civil one. "Aren't you that famous detective from England who always asked in the end of a solved case, _why_? How come?"

"This case is far from solved, as far as I know…" Hakuba mumbled.

"I just finished it!" Kaito clapped, gloved palms not making that sound which expressed anticipation. "And I am giving you the opportunity to conclude it, once and for all."

"Huh?"

The response caused Kaito to smirk.

What was that? _Hakuba_, baffled beyond intelligent enunciation? And_ Kaito_ did that? Delectable. Absolutely delectable.

Saguru shook the bewilderment off, now determined to remain oblivious to Kaito's unspoken, unconfirmed, inadvertent intentions to toy with his regular cogitation. "What have you found?"

"Pandora!" Kaito mused. "It's the entire reason I am, the damn origin of, Kaitou Kid!"

Hakuba's eyes widened for a second at Kaito's building excitement. "Pandora? A gem, I suppose?"

"_The_ gem, Hakuba!" Kaito grinned his infamous shark-grin, eyes sparkling for the first time that night.

Kaito waited a moment to give the gears in Saguru's head time to turn more, as if his words were oil to allow smoother mechanical movement. He watched the imaginary spark of comprehension appear in Saguru's eyes and let him speak. "You've finally found your real target. You've finally claimed it, haven't you? The sole purpose of your thieving—"

"I wouldn't say it was the _sole_ purpose," Kaito interjected. "The heists have turned into a whole lot of fun, thanks to Nakamori-keibu and his task force, that little brat Tantei-kun… And you. Thanks a whole lot to you."

Hakuba stifled a fond smile as he took into account the fact that his life_ had_ become more thrilling at the arrival of the mental challenge everybody called 'Kaitou Kid.' And he continued, "You did it."

"I did." Kaito didn't hesitate before repeating it. Sweet satisfaction dripped in his voice. "I've found it."

"Well…" Hakuba felt another question rise to the fact that Kaito only had gloves on his hands and nothing in them, and let it pour out his mouth. "Where is it now?"

"I've destroyed it." Kaito's expression suddenly darkened. "I've destroyed it for good."

Hakuba didn't need Kaito to go on and write it down for him. The only reason Kid would destroy such a thing is if it caused pain or suffering or injustice to anyone else.

But Saguru couldn't quite deduce any further than that. He didn't even know what reason he had to believe that the Kaitou Kid was an actual force of good simply operating on the wrong side of the law. Intuition, maybe? Or maybe it was that he had strong faith in his theory that Kuroba Kaito _was_ the Kaitou Kid, and that he'd been around the former long enough to conclude that he wouldn't let the latter hurt anyone.

"At all costs," Kaito seethed. "At all damn costs, I made sure I've destroyed it so_ they_ can't have it. They killed my father, they hurt innocent people, they took so much away from so many. So I made sure no one is going to get hurt because of it again."

"Should I say I am proud of you, then?" Hakuba raised an eyebrow, not really meaning what he said, as it sounded so dumb and insignificant. But to get something, anything out, he opted to say the first thing that came into mind in the mess of all other thoughts.

"No." Kaito held his palm up. "That is no longer necessary. I only came to plead, not to be praised."

Saguru nodded, lightly nudging Kaito to continue.

"It's a huge favor. I only trust it with you."

"Why?"

"You're one of my very few real friends, that's why…" Kaito said honestly. "I think we both know that."

"What about Nakamori-s…" Hakuba started, but could not continue when he saw the pain that appeared on Kaito's face at the mention of her name.

"I said I could only trust this with you. You and only you."

Hakuba nodded, even in the midst of missing what Kuroba was really meaning to say.

"I'm glad you weren't at the heist tonight," Kaito then said.

"I had thought I would just go to the next one," Saguru replied. "But seeing you've found your true target, I guess… I have just missed your last heist."

"Not my last, Tantei-san!" Kaito proclaimed, flipping the Kid switch back on. "That was _not_ my last heist."

"What do you mean?" Hakuba asked forthrightly.

"I have one more. One last," Kid said, drawing closer to Saguru. "But I can't do it alone. I need help."

"You couldn't be asking for _my_ help on a heist, could you, Kid-san?"

"That's a nearly flawless deduction, Hakuba-san!" Kid praised, returning the honorific.

"I don't know…"

"It's simple." Kid reassured, loosening his red tie.

Hakuba waited for Kid to elaborate.

Soon enough, he did. "There is this one more precious gem that I can't let _anybody else_ have, you see." Kid by now had even undone the first few buttons of his dark, rich blue dress shirt.

"So you have it?" Hakuba inquired, curiosity rising at the way Kid was choosing cryptic words.

"I'm sure I do. Sometimes I wish I didn't. Especially now."

Saguru watched as Kaito's mask threatened to fall off, as tears began gathering in the corners of his eyes. As if they had been kept at bay for so long and were just begging to be able to flow free. Maybe they had and were.

"It's a very precious, priceless gem. A jewel even_ I_ am not worthy of."

Hakuba watched and listened intently as Kaito's voice began to crack even as he attempted so hard to keep the Kaitou inflection of it alive.

It honestly was one of the most pathetic things Hakuba had ever heard. And that was saying something, given how miserable Saguru's lonely life could be sometimes.

"Go on," Saguru gently urged, uneasy about how he should even go about it. Let Kaito talk at his own pace? Or demand he finish before he broke down?

"It's the dearest thing I've ever been proud to be in possession of, the special thing I've cherished_ the most_ ever since I lost my father. It's the most prized thing anyone will ever have the pleasure to hold."

"Kuroba—"

"And I need you to steal it from me."

"What?!" Hakuba shot away from the thief, eyes wide as saucers. "This is what our truce is about?! No way!"

Kid nodded, as if he expected the reaction. He calmly followed the detective to his bed, tie hanging loosely in his hand as he'd taken it off while introducing his love. "I'm not asking you to go against any principles you have as a detective, Tantei-san. You should know by now that I respect your dealings with cases and people involved in them, and I honor your moral code for everything it is."

"You're saying that, but you just laid out your petition, I heard it loud and clear!" Hakuba argued, backing up right against the wall in his bustle to get away from what the Kaitou was asking of him.

The Kid smirked, continuing to tread forward until he was face to face with his favorite detective. "Now, now," he cooed, to try to stop him from rebuffing for a while, putting a gloved finger to Saguru's lips.

A trembling finger, Hakuba observed. He wondered why Kaito was still trying to put on his pretense performance. He was about to collapse emotionally, and he knew it.

They both knew it.

"It's nothing against the law, I promise you," Kid went on, undoing the raven black tie around Saguru's neck. He managed to tug it off the bewildered blond as quickly as possible without choking him.

"Kuroba—"

"Kid," he corrected instantly, not even waiting for the honorific. "You're talking to Kid now. Not Kaito."

"I'll be honest," Saguru chuckled helplessly. "I am having trouble comprehending this."

"It's okay," Kid replied. "You don't have to worry about anything."

"I'm fairly certain this entire situation is to worry about." Hakuba countered, his incessant detective attitude of inquiry breaking through the befuddlement. His deep brown eyes took the thief in and he made quick observations and deductions. "Is that a slash on your cape? What happened?"

Kid did not answer as he wrapped his red tie around and under the collar of Saguru's dress shirt, fastening it, loosening it, until it was just right. "Keep this tie for me."

"Kid-san," Hakuba muttered as the Kaitou withdrew, pleased with his neck-work. He eyed the snowy figure opposite him and asked more questions. "And is that a char on your sleeve? Your slacks, are they ripped? What on earth happened?"

"I told you not to worry," Kid consoled condescendingly. "Everything's fine."

"Kuroba-kun…"

"Now, let's talk about our arrangement!" cheered Kid, plumping down on the side of Saguru's bed.

Saguru could do nothing but stare as the thief made himself comfortable on his mattress.

"It's not going to be an easy heist. I'll tell you that first…" Kaito instructed. "You can take all your time. I encourage you to go at your own set pace. Just make sure you can, and will, make it happen."

Hakuba hadn't even truly made his mind up about this: Was he going to resist? Was he going to capitulate? What was this _really about_ anyway?

"But it won't be dangerous. At all. I promise."

Well then, this caught Saguru's attention. If anyone knew the definition of _dangerous_, what with all the stunts he pulled off at his events, Kaitou Kid would be it.

"However, this won't be my legacy, Tantei-san." Kaitou Kid slightly shifted. "After you complete this heist… I expect everyone will have forgotten about me—"

"What?!"

Kid only looked up, watching as Saguru scratched the back of his head in confusion.

Saguru shook his head, now past resisting. And not on the capitulating side. "I can't do that!"

"Yes you can," was the immediate reply.

"I _can't_ do that," Saguru repeated quietly, a defeated tone taking his voice over.

Surprised, as Kid knew his Tantei-san was not one to give up, especially not this early along in a challenge, the Kaitou mimicked the detective's actions as he scratched the back of his head.

He began to understand what Hakuba was saying, by the way those ruby eyes latched onto his own amethyst ones.

It wasn't that he_ can't_ do it. It was that he _couldn't._

He felt he shouldn't, therefore wouldn't, _besides_, he couldn't.

"I told you, haven't I?" Kuroba Kaito then made his reappearance, his modulation turning civil and informal, almost friendly. "You're the only one I can count on for this."

"Kuroba-kun…" Saguru's voice trailed off as Kaito closed in on him, putting his hands on his shoulders.

"I mean it, Hakuba." Kaito gulped. "Please."

"But Kuroba-kun…"

"It's gonna be okay. The world is better off forgetting about Kaitou Kid."

"But—"

"This gem I need you to steal…" Kaito flashed Saguru a half-heartened, broken smile. "It has a name."

"Wait a second, Kuroba-kun, I haven't agreed to your terms yet—"

"Nakamori Aoko," Kaito pronounced, his voice weak and wavering, yet determined.

"What?"

"My most prized treasure." Kaito drew back and turned around, swiping away a tear that had fallen down his cheek without his permission. "Nakamori Aoko."

"What are you talking about," Hakuba snickered, trying to convince himself what Kaito had just said was a joke.

"I'm not joking!" Kaito yelled, about-face. He grabbed Saguru's collar with both hands and shoved him against the wall, tears flowing cascading down his cheeks after escaping his eyes. "I have so much to leave behind, Hakuba, and I need to make sure they're all placed under good care!"

Saguru blinked, finding it hard to believe that this other side of that always collected thief could be so emotionally unstable.

Kaito shook his head apologetically, letting Saguru go from his sudden, violent grip. "I need to make sure _you're_ all placed under good care…"

"I don't understand why you have to do this…"

"You never will," Kaito murmured. "You don't have to."

"Kuroba—"

"Just help me out this one last time, and I'll be out of your hair for good," Kaito spoke quickly.

Hakuba shook his head slowly.

He didn't want that.

More than he didn't want to lose one of his favorite puzzle books, his favorite brain exercise, he didn't want to lose his _only friend._

"Kuroba-kun…"

No, he couldn't stand that kind of pain.

His head hung low, staring at the dirty white shoes of his pseudo-adversary.

He couldn't lose him. His only friend, the only one in so long who understood the way he thought and acted, the only one in so long who served as a companion of several sorts…

"I don't want to go either," Kaito then said.

Saguru's head snapped up in surprise that Kaito was able to read through him like that.

_Exactly why_ he couldn't even begin to imagine the rest of his life without him if he truly was leaving for good.

"But I have to. It's for the good of everyone around me. Jii-chan, 'kaa-san, Aoko… Even _you_, Hakuba."

But if that meant having to lose Kaito and sacrifice their relationship— "I don't want what's good for me!" Hakuba wailed defiantly. He was so embarrassed to have to admit it, but at this point, he would do anything to get Kaito to stay, even if and when he didn't even know where he was going. "I need you around!"

Kaito smiled, a somehow contented smile. And it was a sad smile at that.

Hakuba gritted his teeth, construing Kaito's behavior rude, as he seemed to be laughing at the humiliation Saguru just went through. "And Nakamori-san?! There's no way I would—"

"Yes, there is!" Kaito panned, knowing he was somehow giving in and feeding the altercation. "I know how much you admire Aoko and—"

"What's it to _anyone_ if I _do_ hold some affection for her—"

"It's a big deal to me! I want to know that I'm leaving her in capable hands! Good, clean, capable hands, Hakuba! My hands are full and dirty!"

"I refuse!"

"You can't," Kaito drawled. "You can't refuse. This is the only thing I'm asking of you, Hakuba, can't you do it as my friend?!"

"That's exactly why I can't do it!" Hakuba exclaimed. "I_ am_ your friend, Kuroba-kun! So how on earth do you expect me to steal the heart of the girl whom you love away from you?!"

Kaito let his eyes dart off Saguru, as if his words were a powerful, forceful slap to his face. "Do you think it was easy for me to even think about giving her up?"

"Give her up?! You don't have to—"

"Yes, I do, you just don't understand!"

"Then make me—"

"No!" Kaito screeched, pulling on his hair in frustration that Hakuba was being stubborn. He'd expected it, but a small part of him was just too optimistic that Hakuba would relent. Said part was easy to let down as well, and it affected every other part of him. "I love you, okay?!"

This switched all of Saguru's defenses off. "_What?_"

"I love you," Kaito reiterated without second thought. "I love you, I love you, I love you!"

"Kuroba-kun…"

"And don't make me say it again!" Kaito growled, dropping to the bed. "I trust you, I respect you, I look up to you, I adore you, I appreciate you, I think highly of you, I…"

"Kuroba-kun—"

"I believe in you!" Kaito cried. "I believe in you more than you do yourself, and I know you can do this! Whether or not for me, you can pull this heist off because you're _amazing_, Hakuba!"

Now was not the time for Hakuba to succumb to the flattery, being complimented honestly for the first time ever in his life. But the things Kaito was saying… "I'm nowhere near as admirable as you. Nakamori-san would never—"

"But_ I_ would!" Kaito cut him off. Seeing how he blurted that out unintentionally, he changed the topic. "Aoko will need you after I'm gone, Hakuba. Do you understand at least that?"

"Yes, but—"

"But nothing! If you understand up to that, then what is holding you back?!"

Hakuba was not just about to concede his insecurities to Kuroba-kun.

No. Never. Not in a million years.

Show vulnerability, sure. Kuroba's seen all that and he's the only one…

"I can't come back after I go, Hakuba. I'm not even sure if I will ever even see you again, are you really okay with spending our last few moments together fighting?" Kaito questioned quietly.

Hakuba shrugged and sat next to Kaito, the mattress springs creaking under their weight.

Silence fell over them and swallowed them whole for several minutes as they sat absorbed in mental questions with no answers; They remained unmoved and undisturbed in odd but comfortable lull.

"Are you going to tell anyone where you'r going?" Hakuba asked.

"Nope," Kuroba answered. "You'll all know soon enough."

"So what did you really come here for?"

"To say goodbye to a very dear friend of mine," Kaito said, more to himself than to the inquirer.

"And how about that favor?"

"I thought it up at the last minute, I really just had to drop by before I go. You're my best friend and worst enemy, and I had to see you one more time." Kaito turned to Saguru.

"Kuroba-kun…"

"But maybe the little favor I thought of leaving with you was too much. I guess you don't see me like I see you—"

Hakuba interrupted, "I'll do it."

"You will?!" Kaito excitedly recurred, not thinking when he threw his arms around Saguru in a tight hug.

Saguru was overwhelmed with the sudden contact, as he was by the realization of what he'd just agreed to. But after seconds it felt natural. He held Kaito just as tightly.

Kaito was about to pull back when he felt Saguru hold on firmly.

Yes, that aforementioned vulnerability Saguru thought of to himself just seconds ago. A huge part of this was his emotional neediness. The smaller part was physical comfort. He got this sometimes from Kaito and Kid alike, rarely, too.

But when he did, it was the most gratifying thing in the world.

And so Kaito let himself remain in Saguru's arms for a few more minutes.

"Will you ever come back?" Saguru asked, "To see my progress?"

"I'll be watching you," Kaito replied, caressing the tea-colored hair on his shoulder. "I can't promise I'll come back. But I can promise, and I am hopeful, that maybe, just maybe, we'll see each other again…"

"I love you," Saguru said, acknowledging and replying to when Kaito said it in so much haste earlier.

"I know," Kaito mumbled, pulling back.

"For a thief, you're pretty smart." Saguru smirked.

"And for a detective…" Kaito smirked as he started. "You're pretty…" Kaito reached into his pocket and brought out his hand in a fist. With a flick of his wrist, he made a seemingly pristine white rose appear in a small puff of pink smoke. "Perfect."

Hakuba took the rose reluctantly and set it aside. "You're not putting me to sleep with that," he said, recognizing the faint smell of some sort of sleeping agent the Kaitou probably doused the petals in.

"Should've known," Kaito smiled, amused that Saguru was not as gullible as Aoko.

He had taken advantage of his knowledge of her habits and handed her a red rose he'd conjured up out of nowhere, like the first time they met, only to have her sniff the sedative and pass out for a peaceful, less painful (on her part) goodbye, earlier that evening.

"So," Hakuba watched as Kaito reached into his pocket again. He brought out a small capsule shaped object, and Hakuba knew what it was.

Only he figured it out a little too late.

"Good night, Tantei-san," was all he heard in the midst of the blinding light from the flash bomb. His nose picked up the scent of stronger sleeping gas that was leaking from a can the Kaitou Kid had broken open and thrown into Saguru's small vicinity. He fought to stay awake. But the blurry images of Kid running off, grabbing his top hat and putting it back on his head, perching onto the sill, tipping the brim of his hat at the detective in a gesture of final, parting courtesy, jumping out his window, all registered once in this detective's head, just before consciousness depreciated into a thing of oblivion.

—

Hakuba awoke the next day only to have several officers call him to the station to handle a comer case. He didn't know what all the rush and ruckus was about until he'd found out that the case he'd been assigned to was a homicide case.

But not just any homicide case. No, Hakuba had had too much of that that it was almost mundane.

He went over immediately, hoping the scene had not even been disturbed.

Of course, forensics were just waiting to be allowed to take over, but Hakuba insisted they stay where they were.

When he got there, a report was handed to him as soon as he asked.

A body was found with three fatal bullet wounds: One on the right arm, another on the left shoulder, and finally the other through his chest. There were several other cuts and bruises on his arms and legs, theorized to have been caused by getting hit or falling over one too many times.

This body donned the typical Kaitou Kid costume. A little roughed up, but it was recognizably the typical Kaitou Kid costume. The body sported it. White suit, top hat. Save for his monocle with the clover charm and his signature red necktie.

Male. 127 pounds/14 kilograms in weight, 174 centimeters/5 feet, 8 inches in height. Blood type: B. Age, hypothesized to be around 17 or 18 years. Hair, black that shone brown in light. Eye color—

"Kaitou Kid has been murdered," Nakamori Ginzo's voice sounded, a little frailer than usual, and it rang in Hakuba's ears for the longest time. "Kaitou Kid is dead."

Saguru's head slowly rose to watch the quiet officer. He didn't make eye contact, as the cop obviously didn't want it. He strode off to go help his subordinates, maybe.

Hakuba trained his eyes back onto the short report.

"_Kuroba Kaito_," it read in big, bold letters, at the very top of the page he'd skipped seeing.

Through DNA testing, it was confirmed… The identity of the most elusive thief that heisted through all over the world, one of the greatest mysteries to this universe, was revealed and resolved to be of Kuroba Kaito, an almost average 2nd year student enrolled in Ekoda High.

Hakuba pondered. How long had he been knocked out by that stupid gas?! He then remembered the ungodly number of missed calls registered on his phone log. How long was he being waited for? Enough time for them to search and scan for prints and collect samples to confirm DNA? Enough time for what else, who knows?!

And now, as he thought of that, he couldn't dismiss the idea that he could've done something had he been at the heist, had he been there even at just the crucial moments… Had he not decided to skip the thief's rendezvous to fulfill the agenda of rereading his favorite Sherlock novel… Had he just been less tired from teasing Kaito at school and throwing him his usual accusing banters…

Hakuba cursed in his head. Then out loud. Fresh tears burst in his eyes, breaths decelerated, knees gave out.

_To bloody hell with composure._

—

The investigation went smoothly, nevertheless.

They found the man who wielded the gun that shot bullets that matched those wounds on the red, blood-stained Moonlight Thief. But with a bullet through his own head. The burn mark on his temple and his fingerprints on the gun were enough to close the case as homicide-suicide.

He'd heard of worse. Massacres at furthest, albeit simple kidnappings. Several locked rooms and alibi tricks, he thought to himself he should've been used to it by now.

But this one single case changed Hakuba Saguru's life forever.

Kaitou Kid was gone.

Kuroba Kaito was gone.

His worst enemy… And his best friend… Was gone.

_Forever._

—

Kaito couldn't have been any more right when he said Aoko was going to need Saguru once he left.

As soon as Aoko heard of the news, that Kaito was dead, she fell into depression. No one could get to her. Not even her father.

It had been a week before Saguru decided to attempt to try to comfort her.

He couldn't bring himself to eat or sleep, he turned down any and every case he got from people who didn't know or understand what he was so sad about, everyone, really.

The one time he did allow himself some shut-eye, he had a dream he could not remember a minute later when he woke up. All he knew was that Kaito was in it.

That was enough to remind himself of the task he was given. The silent promise he made when he said his final goodbyes at the funeral.

Saguru was answered by Ginzo at the door when he knocked, surprised to have seen him there but unquestioningly let him in.

He gave him directions to Aoko's room upstairs, and he went off.

Saguru gently knocked for the second time on anywhere in that household after pressing his ear to the thin wood, only to hear such audible crying.

He took it with dignity when Aoko yelled at the man outside her door to leave, thinking he was her father.

But Saguru only knocked again. "Aoko?"

The sobs muted for a second. Heavy steps approached the door.

Saguru was ready to be pushed away.

So what a surprise it was when Aoko threw her arms around him.

Saguru couldn't even believe that Aoko recognized his voice, that she didn't think him disrespectful for calling her simply 'Aoko,' instead of the usual, more casual 'Nakamori-san' with the matching honorific.

And Aoko cried. And cried, and cried, and cried.

And Saguru held her. Kept her from falling further apart.

This time they spent together, comforting each other, attempting to get up together, helping each other heal, stretched until a time very very far in the future wherein they'd grown and learned to live again, in less pain and more acceptance.

They thought, Kaito was finally up in heaven. The best place there is to be.

It wasn't long before they made half-meant jokes about Kaito wreaking havoc up there with his father, in their new home in the clouds.

That heist? Saguru had successfully accomplished it. Aoko never found out it had started as a heist, but she'd willingly given him her heart. So much so, that Saguru didn't even think it a heist anymore.

They fell in love.

But Saguru knew, he always knew, that Kaito was always watching.

Saguru and Aoko returned to school, graduated at the top of their class anyway, as both had never really been short of IQ. They went to university together, graduated again…

Saguru continued to work as a detective, independent and pretty recognized, while Aoko followed in her father's footsteps and worked at the Police department. But no longer were they deciphering riddles on heist manifestos nor leading task forces in pursuit of a thief.

Life was as peaceful as it could get, working in the crime-investigating field.

Then they married.

Oh, and they had a child. His name was Kaito, derived from the name of the greatest man either of his parents have ever known.

_**Kuroba Kaito.**_


End file.
